


Whimsy

by HollowMashiro



Series: Webtoons Collection [1]
Category: unOrdinary (Webcomic)
Genre: Ensemble Cast, Gen, One Shot Collection
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-08
Updated: 2020-05-20
Packaged: 2020-08-13 07:20:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,220
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20170357
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HollowMashiro/pseuds/HollowMashiro
Summary: A collection of unOrdinary oneshots, because I have Feelings about this webcomic and I need to do something during the hiatus. No posted Fastpass spoilers (yet).1. Rei discovers an alternative use of fireworks.2. "I am the most impressive fucking cripple you've ever met."3. Daemon!AU4. Seraphina calls William Doe for some insight after Joker's fight with the Royals.UPCOMING (not in order)5. John is paired with Remi for that English project instead of Seraphina.6. Rei visits Wellston.7. John doesn't hide his ability when he arrives at Wellston. This does and doesn't change things.





	1. Fireworks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rei discovers an alternative use of fireworks.

Blood drips from the gash on Rei’s forehead, and terrible burns scream at him across his body. The high-tier woman is powerful, and her ability easily injures, but Rei is far more frightened by the way the electricity sparking across his body is weak and subdued and how he can’t stop shaking and shivering, nerves jumping under his skin.

He’d been ambushed. All was well, another day saved, another asshole causing problems for lower tiers subdued and left for the authorities – and while he was heading home in a deserted area, fire bloomed across his back, followed by a cold numbing sensation that ensured that he was almost too slow to dodge smoldering claws.

Then again, the way this fight is progressing, Rei might just end up skewered, anyway.

_Sorry, Remi_, Rei thinks. _Your dumb big brother might not make it home tonight._

That doesn’t mean he’ll make it _easy_ for the masked bitch who jumped him, though. Rei really wishes he knows why she’s trying to kill him and what she did to weaken his ability.

An unexpected fireball hurls him through the wall of a building, and Rei crashes into what looks like the backroom of some department store. Even though the wind has been knocked from him, he forces himself to his feet, viscerally aware that if he stops moving, he’s dead. He thrusts himself to the side, feeling fiery claws skim his cheek, and he gives himself a couple seconds to breathe by kneeing the woman in the gut and sending the strongest shock he can muster into her. She backs off a second, apparently surprised that Rei still has enough fight left in him to pull even that much off, and that moment allows Rei to topple as many heavy shelves onto her and behind him as he can. He hears muffled swearing and flames eating through the shelves and merchandise, but even she cannot both cut through the mess and get to him at the same time.

Rei flees further into the building, hoping to lose the woman or at least regain some of his strength. Rei can’t afford to play honorably in this fight. As things are, he will lose, and that is unacceptable. This is no rank match, where a surrender from the loser is sufficient to end the fight. If Rei loses here, he will die.

Rei leans against a shelf, trying to muffle his panting and give his heart time to pump oxygen back into his shaking limbs. He looks around, watching for any signs of the woman’s approach. Judging by a distant glow, she is still a bit distant. Rei eyes the shelves to see if there are any items or weapons he could use to his advantage in this fight. A fire extinguisher or knife would be great… but Rei apparently has hidden in the party isle, because he is surrounded by cards and party favors.

Rei glowers at a cheerful banner hung over the isle that reads, ‘Celebrate your special day!’ The day someone dies sure is special, isn’t it? The universe has a cruel sense of humor.

Rei creeps forward, hoping to find the store entrance, when he hears the slightest scuff of a foot on linoleum. He throws himself to the side. The flaming claws aiming to pierce his heart slice his shoulder, and the brief moment of contact allows Rei to give the woman another pathetic shock. He scrambles forward toward the store entrance, his hand frantically latching onto something bulky in the process. Unfortunately, it’s not heavy enough to use as a bludgeon.

Rei cries out in agony as a fireball propels him forward into the entrance area of the store. Even though the flames from each of the woman’s attacks extinguish themselves quickly, Rei feels like his whole body has been set on fire. He’s only a few steps away from the door, but it may as well be miles, for all that he can reach it. Hazily, he processes the label of the bulky package he grabbed from the shelves: Flint’s Funky Big Bundle of Fireworks.

A small idea enters Rei’s mind. It’s crazy and desperate, but the chances of him walking away from this are slim. Might as well go out with a bang.

He rolls onto his back and forces himself up on an elbow to see the woman watching him from a few feet away with a predatory, triumphant gleam in her eyes. She knows she has won. Rei knows it too.

“Shame a high-tier like yourself wasted his life like this, X-Static,” she says, flexing her claws. “Anything final you’d like to say?”

“Merry fucking Christmas,” Rei snarls, even though it’s August. He hurls the bundle of fireworks at the woman, who predictably lunges forward and slices the bundle in half. Her flames ignite the fireworks instantly. Rei sees an infuriated and horrified look flash across the woman’s face before blinding, colorful light and a deafening boom render him unconscious.

* * *

“Fireworks. You fended off a superior attacker, while your ability was messed up, with _fireworks? Have you lost your mind??_” Arlo says disbelievingly. Rei thinks it’s nice of his successor to visit him in the hospital, along with Remi, but Arlo still needs to work on his temper. Arlo looks like he wants to strangle someone, probably Rei.

Remi; having already worked through her fear, horror, incredulity, and relief of the incident; giggles at Arlo’s reaction. “He’s alive, Arlo. Who cares how or why?” Remi says.

“You wouldn’t have even been in that situation if you hadn’t stupidly decided to join the ranks of those maniac Superheroes running around on the streets! Have you lost your mind, Rei?” Arlo shouts. Rei is glad the rooms are soundproofed.

“Read a certain book that addresses the problems in our society and proposes a workable solution. You might have heard of it,” Rei says dryly.

Arlo looks ready to pop a vein at the answer. Funnily, Rei is nostalgically reminded of Dr. Darren. “You cannot go back out there when you’re healed, Rei! You almost _died! _I forbid you from dying until we’ve had our rematch, so get your damn head screwed on straight!” Arlo seethes. He turns away from Rei and Remi, stomping out of the room and barely avoiding slamming the door.

Remi sighs. “Darn it Asslo. Can’t you show worry normally?”

Rei chokes, amused by the nickname. “Asslo?” he snickers. Remi blushes but refuses to elaborate. “Well, he can rest easy,” Rei continues. “X-Static won’t be making another appearance for a while.” At least, not until Rei is fully healed and has refined his approach. He’s not infallible and needs something more than just his ability to keep him safe. Definitely some weapons. Maybe some utility tools and a small recording device. And perhaps someone to serve as backup, someone with a high-tier ability, good experience reading people and fighting, and a desire to make the world a better place.

Elsewhere, a black-haired cripple sneezes.


	2. Cripple

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I am the most impressive fucking cripple you’ve ever met.” An AU where Zeke interrupts the first students picking on Seraphina following the reveal of her power lack instead of Blyke.

John aches from the bruised skin and cracked bones Zeke and some mid-tiers have oh-so-kindly deigned to gift him with, and his back burns from Krolik’s laser. He’s face-down on the floor, head spinning from being beaten. He levers himself up a few inches on an elbow, just in time to see Zeke land a crushing punch on Seraphina. She goes down hard. John can see, from the way she’s curled up and how the muscles in her neck are convulsing, that she’s trying not to vomit.

_Dammit, who posted that article on Seraphina? _John thinks furiously, the sight of Seraphina hurt causing his mind to go white at the edges with rage. _They’re dead!_

Zeke laughs delightedly, like the sadistic piece of trash he is. “That’s not how this works, Seraphina! You’re a cripple now! You can’t fight back!” Behind Zeke and Seraphina is a ring of students, including the two shithead mid-tiers who started the whole fight, a green- and blue-head with basic augmentations to punches and kicks, respectively.

Neither one had any fighting skills at all, just a couple of shitty mid-tiers going after Wellston’s newly-outed _pair_ of cripples for kicks, and both were easy to take down. But John hadn’t been able to get himself and Seraphina out of there before Krolik seared John’s back, and the two mid-tiers from before, who’d gotten their breath back, decided to kick the shit out of him for daring to defend against an unprovoked attack. Then things got worse when Zeke wandered around the corner, found that Seraphina had indeed lost her ability, and decided to throw his weight around.

(In another world, it was Blyke who protected John and Seraphina when news of Seraphina’s ability loss was first confirmed. But _there _is not _here_, and a different high-tier in Blyke’s place changes everything.)

John climbs to his feet, intending to try to shield Seraphina from Zeke’s coming blows – because there’s no way that fucker would be satisfied with just one punch – but Zeke appears in front of him and sweeps his legs out from under him.

John starts coughing and wheezing for air when Zeke stomps on his prone form. The laser injury screams in protest. “Now, now, Johnny-boy. Who said you could get up?” Zeke purrs. “You’re not allowed to interrupt my fun with Seraphina.”

To John’s horror, Seraphina has gotten her breath back and stomach under control, and she has decided that the best thing to do in this situation is _shove Zeke_, not run the hell away. “Stop it!” she orders. “Damn you, Zeke, back off and leave us alone! Stop hurting him!”

Zeke grips Seraphina by the neck. Terror flashes across her face as she tries and fails to pry his hand from her throat. Zeke laughs. “You should worry about yourself first before trying to help anyone else, Seraphina!”

_How did this happen? _John thinks in despair. **_She’s_**_ the powerless one, yet she’s trying to protect me? Pathetic. What am I doing down here?_

The face of that bastard Keon flashes through his mind, almost like a reminder from the fucker that _he hurts everyone with his ability, he’s a monster, he shouldn’t use power he doesn’t deserve._

_Fuck you_, John mentally snarls. John doesn’t care if he’s a monster, or if the other students are going to automatically stick him in the school hierarchy if he fights for real, so long as he can rid Seraphina’s face of pain and fear.

His passive ability allows him to see and copy ability auras, though he can’t use any copied abilities until he’s activated his own. He’s already got four abilities copied, one elite-tier and three mid-tier. None of these assholes will have a clue what hit them.

Without another thought, John activates his ability, grabs the leg Zeke is using to keep him pinned, and sends him flying into the wall with augmented strength. Seraphina falls to her knees, gasping and holding her neck protectively.

“Wha-” Zeke chokes, wind knocked out of him from his collision. John hears whispers of _did you see that _and _did John do that _and _are his eyes glowing_ start up immediately, but his sole focus is on the blue-haired boy shaking rubble from his clothes. John staggers to his feet, ignoring his wounds protesting angrily, as Zeke extracts himself from the wall.

Zeke has an ugly snarl on his face. “Who the fuck dares?” he demands, scanning the gathered students for a split second before his gaze lands on John.

“What? But-but you’re a cripple,” Zeke stammers, staring straight into gleaming gold.

John doesn’t miss a beat. “I am the most impressive fucking cripple you’ve ever met,” he growls. “Now leave us the fuck alone.” Then he lunges forward, intent on beating Zeke to a pulp to serve as an example.

Zeke doesn’t get over his shock fast enough to hit his usual bravado at a challenge before John thoroughly outmaneuvers and outclasses him. Once John has beaten him into unconsciousness, he turns to the rest of the students.

All eyes, reflecting fear, are on him. Whispers drift amongst the students like smoke. The mid-tiers who attacked them earlier have fled. This is exactly what John loathes.

“**LEAVE!**” he roars. “And make sure everyone knows that anyone who even _touches _Seraphina will get their ass beat!” John watches, sick to his stomach, as the students scramble to obey him.

John wants to flee to his dorm and never come out. He wants to track down Arlo or any number of students who have wronged him and beat the shit out of them. He wants to break down crying, right here in this hallway, next to one of his unconscious victims.

He does none of this, because there is one more person here that he has to deal with, the one person whose reaction scares him at all. He turns to face her.

“John Doe, you have some explaining to do,” Seraphina hisses furiously, eyes bright with tears.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ~That was angsty, so here's some unrelated bonus crack.~
> 
> Rei stares incredulously at the student in front of him. He’s seen the papers that prove this student is god-tier, and yet—
> 
> “You’re a cripple,” he repeats disbelievingly. Is this kid serious? “But that’s not—”
> 
> “I’m the most impressive fucking cripple you’ve ever met,” John snarks irritably, obviously aware Rei knows his secret. “Now move; I’ve had a long fucking day.” Judging by the bruises and casts, he’s not lying.
> 
> Once John is out of sight, Rei rubs his hands together in a scheming sort of way. No wonder Headmaster Vaughn told him about this kid when he visited. He’s going to befriend John and sort out his mental health issues or die trying!


	3. Thomas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A short daemon!AU of UnOrdinary.

Almost everyone has a daemon – a part-physical, part-metaphysical animal manifestation of a person’s soul. A daemon’s species, size, and colors reflect a person’s personality and ability.

Cripples don’t have daemons. This is a fact of life. They lack the internal spark that allows a daemon to exist.

Daemons can’t be hidden, either – at least, not easily. It usually requires special training to hide them, because daemons hate being cooped up.

So when John shows up at Wellston, no one even has to ask what his ability is. He doesn’t have a daemon, not even hidden in his bag. Everyone automatically knows he doesn’t have an ability, and he is written off as useless.

When Seraphina is paired with John for an English project, it takes her a while to warm up to him, and not just because he’s an annoying cripple. Angelique, her quetzal, seems uneasy around him – not scared, just sad and concerned. She sniffs the space around him as if she’s looking for something, and John always shies away. Once Seraphina and John become true friends, though, Angelique spends as much time as she can curled around John or draped over his shoulders, smothering him with as much affection and comfort as she can. Seraphina finds it a little strange, but it doesn’t bother John anymore, so she dismisses Angelique’s behavior as one of those strange quirks daemons sometimes have that no one can explain.

Isen and Arlo wonder about John’s daemon. On Arlo’s orders, Isen finds old class pictures of John, each of which includes another pair of golden eyes peeking out of the shadows. An exceptionally small daemon would be easy to hide, even if no one is looking for it, but John’s behavior implies he’s at least elite-tier, and small daemons only belong to low-tiers. Later, Isen’s newly-developed fear of John implies John is stronger than him, and daemons at that level are impossible to hide; they’re just too big. No daemon would consent to be separated from its master for long, either, especially if that master is being hurt. So where is it?

* * *

Arlo has broken John, finally forced him to reveal his ability. He has his answers to the questions of ‘how strong is John’ and ‘where’s John’s daemon,’ and they are horrifying.

Black shards of wind slice Ventus and Meili, forcing them away. Just from that one attack, Arlo can already tell John is much stronger than both of them. Ventus’s pigeon and Meili’s ferret-badger rush forward to attack John; without his daemon, he’s open to attack from theirs.

John cries out like he’s in pain, wispy shadows streaming around his body to form a whip-thin tail that lashes the two other daemons away. Arlo’s breath catches in his throat as the form of a _massive_ black daemon appears from nowhere, towering over John and roaring. Arlo almost can’t believe what he’s seeing. Black scales, gleaming and reflective, and massive leathery wings, flared open to maximum size, all attached to a sinuous reptilian body.

A dragon. All god-tiers’ daemons are either mythological or extinct creatures, and it’s even larger than Arlo’s own shimmery ankylosaur. Arlo ignores the partially-forgotten feeling of apprehension from facing someone at his level or higher and prepares to fight. Ventus and Meili don’t stand a chance, and he’ll be next on the list.

Arlo loses badly. Everyone takes notice of his daemon’s more passive behavior, even though Arlo tries to hide it. Everyone also notices how Seraphina’s daemon loses its splendor, Angelique’s feathers and scales becoming dull and how she spends almost all of her time sleeping, curled around Seraphina.

And when Joker appears, he terrifies the students not just because of his brutality, but also because his daemon lurks in wispy shadows, its true form never fully revealed. With no identifying features, Joker could be _anyone_. In a world where daemons are almost impossible to conceal, that is perhaps the scariest thing about him.

* * *

(“Where’s Thomas?” William demands once the full force of what his son is saying has sunk in. “What have you done with him?”

John shrugs. “He’s fine. He just hides nearby. He’s gotten used to helping me pretend to be a cripple.”

John doesn’t say that he figured out he could use his ability to absorb Thomas into himself, just like he absorbs copies of others’ ability auras. He doesn’t say that doing so feels like swallowing acid and that, each time, Thomas’s pain and betrayal is a hundred times more agonizing. He doesn’t say that keeping Thomas contained while he’s being beaten is harder than enduring the blows. He doesn’t say that keeping Thomas inside his aura for hours makes him feel like tight bands have been wound around his chest, making it increasingly hard to breathe. He doesn’t say he wishes Thomas’s conviction is right that Keon was _wrong wrong wrong _so that they could live freely. He doesn’t say Thomas was against the entire plan from the start.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> List of characters I've chosen daemons for, in case anyone is curious.  
John: dragon, Thomas  
Seraphina: quetzal, Angelique  
Arlo: ankylosaur  
Remi: hummingbird (almost a thunderbird)  
Blyke: labrador  
Isen: owl  
Ventus: pigeon  
Meili: ferret-badger


	4. Call

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Seraphina calls William Doe.

Seraphina stares down at the phone in her hand. There are a bunch of missed texts and calls from John. She doesn’t want to answer a single one of them, not after the way she’s just found out one of her closest friends – someone she’s even admired – has been lying to her from day one. She doesn’t have a clue what the real John looks like. Between the smiling cripple and the merciless Joker… which one is the real John?

Even if there are people at Wellston who know Joker’s identity… they can’t give her all the answers, either. Maybe about why John’s current behavior has changed, but not about why he enrolled as a cripple in the first place. Not about his past, either.

Seraphina thought, for a time, that John enrolled as a cripple to bide his time before taking over. But neither the friendly façade nor the Joker seem the type to play a long game.

Seraphina opens her contacts and scrolls through them before landing on the one she wants. He wasn’t honest with her either, about John’s abilities, but maybe she can weasel some answers from him discreetly, so it won’t get back to John. After all, isn’t a parent supposed to know almost everything about their child?

Seraphina inhales deeply, then taps the button for _call William Doe_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was meant to be longer, not just a drabble. But I kinda lost where this was going anyway, with the new developments in the comic. Oh well...


End file.
